Slow design is an “increasingly prominent movement,” says the design group based in Victoria in Victoria
Some mass products can be cheap and short -lived. In strong contrast to this, a slow design, a movement that prioritizes craftsmanship, sustainability and durability – illuminates an upcoming festival in Victoria.
Design Victoria, which runs in the city center from May 1st to 4th, aims to show the value of a good design and at the same time celebrate the growing design community of the island.
“Slow and handmade design is an increasingly prominent movement,” says April McNeil, communication manager at Victoria's A Light Studio, which will organize an open house during the festival.
A light studio was a light bulbous moment for the founders Jennifer Kalman and Emily Wilson, both with an architectural background and with a common love for the innate properties of materials. Together they act luminaires of hardwoods that have been purchased by local wood suppliers, and often use materials that may otherwise waste.
Their limited collection uses recovered wood, which are made of wood mills with small offcuts, wooden walls that want to reduce, and urban trees that have to come down. Freshly cut wood can take up to six months to dry out, together with steps to prevent cracking, but “the effort is worth it,” says Kalman.
“It is definitely more time -consuming than buying new wood, but that's part of the beauty of it,” says Kalman. “We create pieces with stories embedded in them.”
While the costs for consumers can be an obstacle, Kalman and Wilson said that they were “absolutely” a consumer shift that evaluates this type of craftsmanship and noticed a business bond during the pandemic.
“People are fed up with greater culture,” says Kalman. “They are looking for things that are deliberately feeling that make sense and durability to their homes … especially here on the west coast, where there is a strong connection to nature.”
During the Designs Victoria, many other local designers and events will emphasize the slow design.
A grotto house tour with Greenway Studio Architecture, Frontera Homes and BC Green Roof will deal with the thoughtfully small green roofs with small standards, explained Carla Sorll, the director and co-founder of the festival.
“Grotto House has a green roof that is built into a rugged rock, so the rock is part of the house,” she said. “It's about being conscientious with your natural environment and what is possible if you build a house from the ground up.” This tour will take place on Saturday, May 3, at 1:30 p.m. in Fairfield/Gonzales.
For Make -up enthusiasts, Elate Beauty offers an insight into the future of conscious cosmetics and shows a fully reusable packaging -an important function of Sorrell.
“The refillable colors of the compact are available in these small metal containers in which they have magnet instead of throwing out their entire compact. It is quite extraordinary, because when they think about it, you can see that nothing is in the make -up industry.”
On Sunday, the Fed Urban Farm will show how to grow into lively, productive rooms for food, and Aunt Collective, an indigenous creative group, will organize a practical creative practice.
For the launch party, eight local designers, including light designer Mike Randall, design and create a bar that matches a cocktail manufacturer, mixologist and alcohol mark.
And these are just the tip of the iceberg.
Victoria is a city that makes “craft, sustainability and small companies a little different,” says Wilson. So it is no surprise that there is a lot to do.
And festival goers could go away with a better understanding of the effects of thoughtful design.
It is something special for Wilson and Kalman.
“We appreciate the slow design because we have space to be thoughtful; work with our hands, contact our customers and create parts that feel grounded in place and purpose,” says Wilson.
You can find more information at www.designvictoria.ca.